Everything Counts

As a child I held this rather unshakeable theory that God is inherently fair. If He/She let trouble come a person’s way, it was certain to be compensated by rewards later, evening it out. God also likely allocated resources equally. On the surface, if a particular child seemed luckier than others in terms of intelligence or material resources, they were probably facing their own battles in other spheres, unknown to the rest. Philosophical adults that we encountered taught us that monetary wealth cannot buy happiness and true riches pertain to intangible things like the soul, joy and friendship.

As an adult, I ponder more about this equality and try to put my finger on what it is that we as people have been granted in equal measure? We are all blessed with an outer casing, the body; but the makeup industry, the busy offices of plastic surgeons and the touched up photographs on social media testify to common dissatisfaction with what we have been given. Advancing age with all its physical changes only compounds this. Under this shell, is the core essence of a person – the soul. Though all our souls are supposedly derived from a universal divine soul, how deeply we are in touch with this soul whilst alive, is a matter of conjecture. True equality comes with death - when our souls are believed to merge back with the original common one.

If equality inheres in us, there must in all likelihood be at least a faint hint of this possibility if not an overt phenotypical manifestation during our sojourn on Earth.

The well-regarded scientific study by Dr Paul Ekman and Wallace Friesen conducted over four decades found a universality of facial expressions for the basic human emotions irrespective of race, culture, geographical location and literacy. This had originally been predicted by Charles Darwin and interestingly, they had initially thought that Darwin would be proved wrong! Humans use the same facial muscles to convey basic emotions like anger, happiness, shock etc .This holds true even for remote tribes that have never been in contact with humans from outside (in Ekman and Friesen’s case they studied the Fore tribe of Papua, New Guinea). Cultural and circumstantial influences may mask or modify expressions but the underlying facial muscles called into play when experiencing a particular basic emotion, are the same.

Does this also mean we are fundamentally equal in our ability to communicate? If we consider a spectrum of people ranging from those with various types of autism, those with personality traits like introversion, to orators speaking effortlessly to vast audiences, we find that this particular skill is differentially distributed. A subgroup of this may be our ability to smile. We all acquire this fine social tool after a few weeks of settling into the world as newborns. The smile of a baby is adorable even though it may lack teeth. But those who have facial paralysis or Parkinson’s disease for example, can only convey their joy through the expression in their eyes.

Is it the ability to love and be loved? Love is one of the finest, most exhilarating and nuanced emotions. Though there are several of its variants to indulge in, ranging from parental to filial to romantic, yet sadly one finds hatred to be a strong driver for many people and love gets consigned to the shadows. Or is it the ability to feel per se that homogenizes us? We find that many of us are losing this capacity and being ‘thick skinned’ is becoming a common enough adjective.

Does drawing breath render us equal? As long as we are alive, we all breathe. Spiritually advanced persons and those who practice yoga regularly often have an impressive control over their breathing. For the rest of us, our breathing quickens and slows in tandem with our moods and activities and we don’t really have mastery over it.

I intuitively think what really makes us equal is our ability to contribute to shaping the world. We are all assistant co - creators. Speaking metaphorically, the world is like an enormous clay mound waiting to become a beautiful vessel on the Potter’s wheel - an analogy often used in religious works. Building on this, I feel while the Master Potter (God) keeps the base spinning we all add our imprints to this mound of clay representing Earth. It is so huge that we get glimpses of only a part of it.

Everyone is equally important because everyone shapes the world. Each human is special; he/she interprets the universe through an individual outlook derived from influences of parents, teachers and friends and life’s myriad experiences. Hence the output is also customized.

Every action, effort or powerful thought acts like a touch or pat on the clay. Whether we lovingly shape it or punch holes in it is entirely our choice. We can throw on more clay or gently chisel away some based on our perception and energy. It doesn't matter because sometimes it is a rough edge that makes the design stunning or a subtle touch that makes a significant improvement.

Occasionally the patterns are so exquisite that everyone sits up and takes notice.

The impact of our actions can be localized or globalised and independent of the public position we hold. The students participating in the March for Life campaign in the US or the little Swedish schoolgirl, Greta Thunberg, fighting for climate change protection, have demonstrated that you don’t have to occupy a high office to effect great change.

We can condition ourselves to be engaged and creative assistant potters. Masterpieces executed by painters, sculptors and other artistes are treasures lasting centuries. Social workers facilitate upliftment of many humans less fortunate than themselves, enabling and empowering them to make meaningful contributions in turn - a positive ripple effect.

You can even shape the world by just being. As Milton said in the concluding line of his famous poem ‘they also serve who only stand and wait’. A baby is totally dependent, able to interact in a very limited way with its environment; yet can have a tremendously powerful effect. He/she can generate love, and can influence the work and lifestyle choices of parents and family significantly.

Everything counts.

To come back to my childhood belief, it would be reasonable to assume that the invitation to shape the world is open to all. We cannot at all judge whose contribution is lesser or greater as we do not know the Grand Design. Moreover the shape keeps changing a little every second. Our mind’s eye aided by our imaginations, can only guess at the overall shape. Many religious texts including the popular Srimad Bhagavad Gita, advise us to refrain from worrying needlessly how our contribution fared overall. It is perhaps more important to fully and responsibly enjoy this privilege we have received.